In the springtime of that long ago year
of 1953 in New York City, three neighborhood vocal groups from different parts
of the city came together and formed a unit that would endure for the next half
century. The groups were the Harps from the lower east side of Manhattan in
and around the Lillian Wald housing project, and the Five Skylarks and Five
Crowns both from Harlem. This association and interaction resulted in the formation
of the group called The Harp-Tones which consisted of Willie Winfield on lead,
Bill Dempsey and Nicky Clark on tenor, Bill "Dicey" Galloway on baritone,
and Bill Brown on bass. The group began to get their act together and then added
a very important component of their sound - keyboard player and arranger Raoul
J. Cita. After practicing their music and honing the sound that was to become
such an identifiable part of the nineteen fifties, the stage was set for the
group to record. Into the picture came Morty Craft, Leo Rogers, and Monte Bruce
and the distinctive purple Bruce record label.

The very first try in the recording studio produced a classic of the age when
the Harp-Tones sang their version of a song that had been a big hit for pop
singer Fran Warren with the Claude Thornhill orchestra in 1947 - "A Sunday
Kind Of Love" (on Columbia 37219). The song seemed a lucky piece for the
group since that was one of the songs that they featured as The Harps at amateur
night at the Apollo Theater. The record was released as Bruce #101 in late November,
and by mid December Bruce Records was being overwhelmed as fifty thousand copies
of the record had been sold in just two weeks. The song had everything - the
big Hammond organ intro which sounded like those radio soap opera interludes
from the thirties, a wonderful reading of the lyric from Winfield, and great
harmony both backup and ensemble singing on the bridge by the rest of the group.
A memorable sendoff ended the ballad and the sales rush for the tune proved
the attraction of the group. The flip side of the record was called "I'll
Never Tell" and it even garnered some interest as the sound of the Harp-Tones
flooded the radio airwaves during early 1954.

"Sunday" turned out to be a huge success, and nowhere else was it
as big as in their own home town of New York. Some mainstream radio stations
were even playing the R & B disc so great was its popularity. The group
spent much of January touching base with all the radio station dj's in the Northeast
with label boss Monte Bruce. Reports from the Midwest indicate that the record
is breaking big in Chicago. The sales continue into late February as the Harp-Tones
return to the Bruce recording studios for a follow up record, and also sign
on to appear at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, a far cry from the night a year
or so earlier when they were onstage during amateur night. This time they will
be one of the star attractions on the world famous marquee. The group also appears
at the Harlem Festival of Music and Drama held at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem.
The group appears with Carmen Taylor, The Larks, Four Tunes, and Hal Paige and
his combo. The group has now officially dropped the hyphen from their name and
are now The Harptones.

The group is now very much in demand as they do a week at Philadelphia's Uptown
Theater followed by one nighters in Atlantic City and Asbury Park, New Jersey.
Further proof of the popularity of the Harptones so soon in their young career
is shown by the fact that they are one of the acts chosen to appear at Alan
"Moondog" Freed's very first R & B show to be held in the East.
The Mayday Moondog Coronation Ball will be held May 1 at the Armory in Newark,
New Jersey. Sharing the stage with The Harptones will be The Clovers, Muddy
Waters, Charles Brown, and Buddy Johnson & his orchestra. "A Sunday
Kind Of Love" continues to sell as the second release on Bruce (#102) the
Cita written "My Memories of You" starts to move. The flip side is
a Dicey Galloway vocal on "The Laugh's On You". The draw of the music
and its performers, and a harbinger of things to come was the result of the
Moondog show in Newark. Ten thousand got in up to capacity, and thousands more
were turned away, a sight unseen in the Northeast since the height of the swing
craze twenty years before.

The Harptones are now a class "A' attraction and tour the theater circuit
- the Howard in D.C., the Royal in Baltimore, and back at New York's Apollo.
"My Memories of You" is a top selling R & B disc and is also making
some pop hit lists especially in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. The tune with its
plaintive intro by Winfield and much ensemble singing by the group again backed
up by the big sound of the organ (played by jazz stylist Jimmy Smith not session
man Teacho Wiltshire) is a real winner with listeners. In late March "I
Depended On You" and "Mambo Boogie" are released on #104 and
quickly forgotten. Lead singer on these tunes was Nicky Clark in the absence
of Willie Winfield for reasons that are still shrouded in mystery. In July Monte
Bruce allows The Harptones to sing backup for girl singer Bunny Paul for Philadelphia's
Palda Recording Company of Dave Miller. The sides are "Honey Love"
and "I'll Never Tell" and are released on Essex #364. That month the
group records its newest songs for Bruce Records - "Why Should I Love You"
and "Forever Mine" with The Shytones Combo on #109.

Mainly on the strength of sales by The Harptones, Bruce Records opens branch
offices in Chicago and Los Angeles. Monte Bruce also buys out Power Records
and sides by Herb Lance and Don Gardner. The group's "Why Should I Love
You" is covered by The Four Lads for Columbia, another sure indication
that The Harptones are a top recording act. The record is given a further boost
in the Northeast when Moondog Freed comes to New York radio in September on
station WINS. The 'A' side actually has a short lived appearance on the national
pop charts, no small feat for a New York City R & B vocal combo in 1954.
In late fall Freed plans his first R & B show in New York to be held in
mid January at St. Nick's Arena in Harlem. The Harptones will be reunited on
stage with Freed at that show due to the fact that they were judged one of the
top vocal groups by radio listeners to Freed's show. Before that the Harptones
star for a week at the Apollo Theater to coincide with their latest release
for Bruce records "Since I Fell For You" / "Oobidee Oobidee Oo"
on #113. After the Apollo date, the group will do the theater circuit in the
Northeast again.

In January of 1955, Alan Freed's Rock 'n Roll Ball at St. Nick's Arena in New
York was a complete sell out for two nights. The show featured the Harptones
along with R & B stars Joe Turner, Fats Domino, Buddy Johnson & his
band, Danny Overbea, The Drifters, Clovers, and Moonglows. In March Bruce #128
is released and it features The Harptones on Ivory Joe Hunter's great song "I
Almost Lost My Mind". The flip side is the jump tune "Ooh Wee Baby".
In April the group spends the month on a tour of night spots throughout New
England. Bruce Records also releases two 45 rpm EPs by The Harptones (#201 and
202) and announces plans for an LP by the group. In may The Harptones headline
a show by WNJR Newark's dj Danny "Cat Man" Stiles in Passaic. Also
on the bill is Varetta Dillard and The Nutmegs. In June Hy Weiss head of Old
Town Records announces the signing of The Harptones to his new subsidiary label
Paradise Records after the split up of ownership of Bruce records. Leo Rogers
will continue as the group's manager. The first release for the new label is
out in July on #101 and features "Life Is But A Dream" and "You
Know You're Doing Me Wrong".

"Life Is But A Dream" has the sound of a huge hit as soon as it is
heard on radio. The dramatic intro by Willie is followed by trading verses between
Winfield and the rest of the group. The title and main refrain of the song bring
to mind the like sounding tag line from "Sh-Boom" which gives the
song some built in familiarity and serves to further enhance the record's "can't
miss" appeal. The group spends much of the summer on tour throughout Pennsylvania
and the Midwest. The group is back on stage with Alan Freed during Labor Day
week at the Brooklyn Paramount where all time records are set for attendance
and gross earnings set years ago by the comedy team of Martin & Lewis. In
early November the group appears at the Apollo Theater in Harlem with the Doctor
Jive R & B Revue with dj Tommy Smalls. Also on the bill are Bo Diddley,
The Jacks, Flamingos, Heartbeats, Bill Doggett, and Willis Jackson's band. Smalls
will feature some of these acts on the night of November 20 on a segment of
the Ed Sullivan TV show. During the month as "Life Is But A Dream"
continues to sell, Paradise #103 is out which features The Harptones on "My
Success (It All Depends On You)" and the jump tune "I've Got A Notion".
The group plans a lengthy tour of Europe to begin in mid January which is quite
a departure for performers in the R & B field.

In the spring of 1956, Leo Rogers takes The Harptones away from Hy Weiss and
has them record for a label he starts called Andrea Records. Their one and only
release is #100 - "What Is Your Decision" and "Gimmee Some".
The sound of the group is moving further toward a more refined pop music feel,
more like "Life Is But A Dream" and less like the bluesy mood of "My
Success". There was also some backup work on other labels such as behind
Ruth McFadden on Old Town (not on "Darling Listen To The Words Of This
Song") but on #1030 - "Little Schoolboy" and "United We
Stand". A re-recording of their previous hit "My Memories Of You"
was leased by Rogers to the small Tip Top label (partially owned by Rogers)
in August on #401 paired with "High Flying Baby", but this record
was lost almost immediately. Constant touring during the summer leads into Alan
Freed's Second Anniversary Show at the Brooklyn Paramount during Labor Day Week.
They seem to be a perennial part of all Freed shows and are always well received.
Just before the Freed show, Rama Records announces the signing of The Harptones
to that label. Their first recording on Rama #203 is released to coincide with
the Freed show. It features "That's The Way It Goes" and "Three
Wishes". The side that goes big in the New York area is "Three Wishes"
another superb vocal by Willie Winfield on the pop styled ballad. In October
the motion picture called "Rockin' The Blues" has its premiere at
the Apollo Theater. The Harptones appear in the film as do The Hurricanes and
The Wanderers.

In 1957, the year starts out with the group realizing good (not great) sales
of "Three Wishes" as a lot more listeners grow accustomed to the pop
shadings the Harptones now favor. One style that is popular with the many listeners
of vocal group records is the young high tenor lead started by Frankie Lymon.
This produces a teenage feel to the music and relegates The Harptones and many
vocal groups in similar situations to an "adult performer" status
that hurts them among the young record buyers. A second quality release for
Rama follows in early 1957 with "On Sunday Afternoon" backed with
"The Masquerade Is Over" on #214. "Sunday" follows the path
of their previous release with good initial sales on the East coast. All the
hallmarks of the Harptones sound are there. The impeccable lead singing by Winfield
and the intricate and wonderfully woven sound of the harmony backup show that
this is a vocal combo that really knows their way around a song. The next time
out for the group on Rama comes in March and features another wonderful ballad
tune "The Shrine of St. Cecilia" which is paired with one of their
old jump tunes "Oo Wee Baby" on #221. Many longtime vocal group and
Harptone fans count their Rama records as their best because of the distinctive
sound and polish of these recordings. The ballad tunes certainly show the musical
maturity that they had learned as hard workers at their craft for the last five
years and are a mainstay of Eastern rock 'n roll. The group stars with Alan
Freed's Easter Week show at the Brooklyn Paramount.

In the summer of 1957, George Goldner decided to move The Harptones to Gee records,
still hot with The Cleftones and The Teenagers. Continuing the trend that they
had established with their Rama Records releases, the Gee side on #1045 featured
another wonderful reading by Willie Winfield on "Cry Like I Cried".
Willie and the group appear with "Jocko" Henderson at the Apollo Theater
for the Labor Day week show at summer's end. The release was on the streets
near the end of 1957. The Harptones once again proved their class as an adult
act with this side and I have always thought they were the equal of The Platters
in this regard. The flip side of the Gee release was "So Good So Fine You're
Mine". The ballad side "Cry" carried on into early 1958 and when
this record played out its run the group went on a sort of hiatus from the recording
studio as if to wait out the changes in the music industry and see where The
Harptones would be in this brave new world.

One of the movers and shakers of the recording industry Morty Craft, whom the
group knew from their days at Bruce Records, now realigned himself with the
group and signed them to his new entity named Warwick Records. In early 1959
the group recorded the pop standard "Laughing On The Outside" and
coupled it with "I Remember" on #500. By now the lineup behind Willie
Winfield consisted of Bill Dempsey, Curtis Cherebin, Milton Love, a long time
member of The Solitaires, and a woman member Toni Brown. "Laughing"
got some decent airplay around the eastern part of the country. The Harptones
continue to do in person appearances in the Northeast in Philadelphia, Wilmington,
and Trenton. The next side for Warwick was ""Love Me Completely"
on #512 late in the year. The flip side for this release was "Hep Teenager"
in an (unsuccessful) attempt to appear timely. In the spring of 1960 the last
Warwick single appeared pairing "No Greater Miracle" and "What
Kind Of Fool" as The Harptones entered the new decade.

In the early nineteen sixties the group appeared on record for an ever changing
array of labels. First after their time on Warwick the group recorded for Co-ed
records with ""Rain Down Kisses" and "Answer Me My Love"
on #540. Next it was a release on Cub #9097 of "Devil In Velvet" and
"Your Love Is A Good Love" noteworthy for the producing efforts of
former Solitaires member Buzzy Willis, and two releases on the Companion label
in mid 1961. The first on Companion #102 - "All In Your Mind" and
"The Last Dance", and was followed by Companion #103 - "What
Will I Tell My Heart" and "Foolish Me" and actually entered the
pop charts if briefly during 1961. From this point on the recorded legacy of
The Harptones takes many twists and turns such as the appearance in mid 1963
on the Bruce label of a session that was recorded a decade earlier - "Loving
A Girl Like You" and "High Flying Baby". This in the midst of
the fading Twist craze and the building Beatlemania in England. There was a
Raven release of remakes of "A Sunday Kind Of Love" and "Mambo
Boogie" in 1962.

The group remained a unit in name into the nineteen eighties and even recorded
in the early part of that decade for the Ambient Sound label. There are two
CDs that remain that preserve the sound of this landmark vocal group. Collectables
#5401 features the group's recording for the labels of George Goldner (Rama
and Gee) from the latter part of the nineteen fifties. Relic #7021 titled "Sunday
Kind Of Love" features the recordings from the Morty Craft and Leo Rogers
time, mainly the Bruce recordings from the Harptones classic period.

In summing up, one must certainly count The Harptones as one of the foremost
practitioners of the art of the Rhythm & Blues vocal group style. Whenever
and wherever recordings in this style are played, the name and music of The
Harptones are never far from the listener. They remain one of the best ever,
and Willie Winfield definitely raised the bar in the standard he set as a lead
singer. Their music will live on forever and ever.